Record for talking machines and method of making the same



Feb. *13, 1923. v

" V. H. EMERSON.

RECORD FOR ,TA LKINGEMACHINES AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME.

FILED APR. 25, 1921.

Patented Feb. 13, 1923.

VICTOR H. EMERSON, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO METAL RECORDING DISC COMPANY, INC., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

RECORD FOR TALKING MACHINES AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME.

' Application filed April 25,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, VIo'roR a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the borough of Manhattan, city, county, and State of New York, have invented a certain new and useful Record for Talking Machines and Methods of Making the Same, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to sound records and particularly to the formation in a solid substance such as a metallic disc or other similar resistant substance of a record of sonorous vibrations, corresponding in form to sound waves.

The principal objects of the invention are to provide an improved disc record tablet or blank which may be dispensed in semiready condition; which will of. itself feed or pilot a stylus attached to a sound box progressively across the face of the record body; in which sound waves may be recorded by means of an ordinary reproducing machine and stylus and by unskilled persons; and in which the record of the sound waves will be substantially permanent and indestructible.

A further object of my invention .is to enable the production of an improved metallic disc sound record, having variations in its surface constituting a record of sonorous vibrations corresponding in form to the vibrations of sound waves, said record of sound vibrations being substantially permanent and indestructible.

A further object of my invention is to provide an improved method of producing in a blank disc a gmnd record having sonorous vibrations corresponding in form to ing machine now in general use by the public, and. without the necessity of additional attachments.

A further object of my invention is to H. EMERSON,

sound waves by means of the ordinary talk- 1921. Serial No. 464,328.

struction hereinafter described in the specification and illustrated in the accompanying drawings considered together or separately;

The inventive idea, involved is capable of receiving a variety of mechanical expressions, some of which for the purpose of illustrating the invention, are shown in the accompanying drawings.

The invention will be first described in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein similar reference characters are used to designate corresponding parts throughout the several views, and the novel features will be pointed out in claims.

In the drawings,-

Fig. 1, is a diagrammatic plan view of a record disc, showing a reproducer in position for either recording or reproducing.

Fig. 2, is a diagrammatic sectional view, on a greatly enlarged scale, of a portion of a record disc, illustrating different possible extreme positions which may be assumed by a stylus relatively to the guiding groove in the disc.

Fig. 3, is a diagrammatic plan view illustrating the forms of groove shown in Fig. 2, and

Fig. 1, is a fication.

My improved record tablet 1 may be formed of suitablehard resistant material such as of the various compositions now commonly employed, but is preferably formed of metal of sufficient hardness to detail sectional view of a modirender it indestructible as regards the ordinary use to which such an article is put. The tablet when of metal may be much thinner than the usual composition discs at present in use and still be of suflicient thickness to prevent bending or buckling. The disc may, when formed of copper, brass or the like be plated if desired, and is provided with the usual spindle receiving central aperture 2 by means of which it may be centered upon a turntable with the spindle passing from the turntable through the aperture.

One or both faces ofthe tablet is provided by stamping, moulding, pressing,- cutting, en-

graving or by any other desired method,

with a blank spiral stylus guiding groove 3 extending progressively between the penphcry of the disc and a central portion of the disc.

,7 The groove 3 is preferably angular in -verge outwardly to the surface of the disc This is of 'cross section, as shown; that is, the walls shown in Fig. 4c. The groove 3 is comparatively broad and shallow, being of a depth sufficient only to cause the stylus 4: of a reproducer 5 when riding or resting in the groove, to be fed progressively across the surface of the disc. The groove where it joins with the surface of the disc is considerably wider than the semi-spherical tip at the record contact end of an ordinary hard reproducing stylus such as those of the steel needles in common use. The groove as formed in the disc, in the course of manufacturing the same, may be of the same cross sectional area throughout its length.

The groove so formed contains no undulations corresponding to sound vibrations and is for the sole purpose of feeding or piloting the reproducing stylus, when in the act of recording, progressively across the face of the disc blank. By reason of such a groove with its piloting action, the necessity of any special recording machine is dispensed with, and the useror the general public will be able to utilize the ordinary talking machine commonly found in his home, both for the purpose of recording and reproducing.

The side walls of the guiding groove diand make a large obtuse angle with each other. In other words, the diverging walls of the groove have a small inclination to the surface of the disc. I have found when the said walls are an angle of 140 that very satisfactory results may be obtained. The divergent walls may be conveniently ob tained by making the cross section of the groove arcuate and less than a semicircle of comparatively large radius.

I have discovered that by constructing the blank metallic discwith a groove having an. angle of such width as to properly feed or pilot the reproducing stylus spirally across the face of the record disc, but wider than the stylus, so as to give greater freedom of oscillation thereto, and by reason of the relative contour of the groove with the outline of the stylus, such a construction secures a maximum ease of vibratory movement of the stylus with a minimum resistance. The blank groove must be of such an angle or width as not to interfere, or offer any appreciable resistance to the travel of the stylus when in the act of recording. special importance when it is considered that the disc employed herein is one constructed of hard resistant material, preferably a suitable metal and the reproducing stylus when acting in a recording capacity should have as little obstacle or resistance as possible, so that it will perform its proper functions.

My improved record tablet blank is adapted for use in connection with the ordinary talking machine, and may be used without making any alterations whatsoever in the machine. The tablet blank, is positioned upon the turntable in the same manner as the ordinary sound record, and the machine is started as in reproducing.

The needle or stylus of the reproducer or sound box is placed in the outer extremity of the groove, and by reason of such engagement the reproducer and its stylus will be caused to travel progressively toward the center of the tablet. When sound vibrations are set up, as by singing or talking into the horn of the apparatus, such vibrations are impressed upon the diaphragm which is caused to vibrate and the stylus will likewise be vibrated by the diaphragm and the contact tip of the stylus will indent, impress or displace the wall of the groove and form therein a secondary groove having undulations corresponding to the said sound vibrations.

The comparatively great angle at which the sides of the groove are arranged relatively to the axial line of the stylus leave but an extremely small amount of metal,

It is obvious, in view of the foregoing,

that I have produced a new type of disc record in which the public, that is the unskilled person, can utilize his talking machine for the purpose of recording and thereby making permanent and indestructible records.

In accordance with the provisions of the patent, statute, I have described the principle of my invention together with the apparatus which I now consider to represent the best embodiment; thereof, but I desire it understood that my invention is not. confined to the particular form of apparatus herein shown and described, the same being merely illustrative, and that the invention can be carried out in other ways without departing from the spirit of my invention, and, therefore, I claim broadly'the right to employ all equivalent instrumentalities coming within the scope of the appended claims, and by means of which objects of my invention are attained, and the new results accomplished, as herein set forth, as it is obvious that the particular embodiments herein shown and described are only some of many that can be employed to attain these objectsand accomplish these results.

Having now described my invention,what I claim and desire to secure byLetters Patent is as follows:

1. A sound record blank; having in a surface thereof a relatively broad and shallow stylus guiding groove.

2. A sound record blank having in a surface thereof a stylus guiding groove of a width greater than the width of the recording tip of a stylus to be used. V

3. A sound record blank having in a surface thereof a shallow stylus guiding groove with outwardly divergent Walls and a. width considerably greater than the width of the recording tip of a stylus to be used.

4. A sound record blank .having in a surface thereof a relatively broad and shallow stylus guiding groove of a width greater than the diameter of the semi-spherical tip at the record contact end of an ordinary reproducing stylus.

5. A sound record blank comprising a disc having a surface of strongly resistant material With a relatively broad and sha llow groove for guiding a stylus progressively across the surface of the blank without materially limiting its vibratory movement.

6. A sound record blank having in a surface thereof a stylus guiding groove, the walls of which diverge outwardly to the surface of the blank at an inclination to the surface of the disc less than 45.

7. A sound record blank comprising a. disc having a metallic recording surface, with a relatively broad and shallow groove for guiding a stylus progressively across the face of the blank, the walls of the groove diverging outwardly at a large obtuse angle to one another so as to offer little resistance to the vibrations of the stylus while being guided across the surface of the blank.

8. A sound record comprising a record body having in a surface thereof a stylus guiding groove with Walls diverging outwardly at an obtuse angle to one another, and also having a laterally undulatoryv sound record groove indented intothe divergent walls of the guiding groove by a stylus.

9. A sound record comprising a disc having in a surface thereof a relatively broad and shallow stylus guiding groove with outwardly divergent walls, and also having a subsequently produced laterally undulatory sound record groove pressed into the diverguiding groove by a having in a surface thereof a stylus guid- Y ing groove with walls diverging outwardly at an obtuse angle to one another, and also having a sound record groove impressed upon the walls by the tip of an ordinary hard reproducing stylus.

12. A sound record comprising a record body having in a surface thereof a stylus guiding groove, the Walls of which diverge outwardly to the surface of the body at inclinations thereto less than 45, and a sound record groove formed subsequently therein by the pointed tip of an ordinary hard repoducing stylus. I

13. The method of making sound-records which comprises forming a progressive relatively broad and shallow stylus guid ing groove in the recording surface of a record body, and subsequently forming an undulatory sound record groove in the bottom of the guiding groove by causing anordinary hard reproducing stylus to ride at its pointed tip upon the bottom of the groove while being vibrated in accordance with sound waves.

14. The method of making 'sound records which comprises forming a progressive relatively broad andshallow stylus guiding groove in the recording surface of a record body, and subsequently impressing an undulatory sound recordgroove upon the walls at and adjacent to the bottom of the guiding groove by the pointed end of an ordinary hard reproducing stylus.

This specification signed this 6 day of April, 1921.

VICTOR H. EMERSON. 

